Community Engagement Programs:

Description: The ebony and persimmon genus (Diospyros) is a diverse group of largely tropical trees and shrubs that comprises between 500 and 700 species distributed on six continents, many of which are poorly known, remain to be described, or of dire conservation concern. Although some species in the genus are widespread and economically important (e.g., persimmons such as Diospyros kaki, D. lotus, and D. virginiana), many species are rare, over-exploited, or poorly known, indeed, recent field studies and taxonomic work suggests there may be as many as 130 undescribed species in Madagascar alone. The proposed work will focus on Diospyros in the Mascarene Islands. The Mascarene Islands comprise three volcanic islands in the western Indian Ocean (Mauritius, Reunion, Rodrigues) that have a largely endemic flora where the majority of native, endemic species are threatened or already extinct.